NOTE: Happy New Year from GateHouse News Service. Our office is closed on Jan. 1.

AT GHNEWSROOM.COM

Check out this week’s poll question idea for your Web site on which top stories of 2009 affected you most. Give your readers a chance to weigh in.
http://ghnewsroom.com/article/poll-question-idea-which-stories-2009-affected-you-most

FLICKS: Look ahead to what’s on 2010’s box office horizon - Flicks is a bit late coming to the keyboard this week. There was a good chance, ruined by circumstance, this space would be dedicated to how great “Sherlock Holmes” was. Holmes apparently was good enough for second place, but it was no thanks to me. Ah, Fate, you cruel mistress. By John Meo.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/east/connecticut/x370507055/Flicks-Look-ahead-to-what-s-on-2010-s-box-office-horizon
- with column mug

NEW YEAR’S EVE CONTENT

Add these stories about tonight’s events to your Web site.

ICY SCULPTING: Rockland sculptors create icy art for New Year’s Eve -- For more than 20 years, Rockland’s Ice Effects company has created ice sculptures for Boston’s First Night. This year, the sculptors are braving sub-zero wind chills to create a tribute to Boston’s Frog Pond and a replica of an Egyptian sculpture on display at the Museum of Fine Arts. By Amy Littlefield.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/east/massachusetts/x1689187572/Video-Rockland-sculptors-create-icy-art-for-New-Year-s-Eve
- with photos, video

BOSTON POPS: Boston Pops to ring in the New Year with the eclectic Amanda Palmer -- Her resume may include posing as a statue, but Amanda Palmer is not one for standing still. Palmer, a performer, composer and musician whose best known incarnation is as front woman and keyboardist for the punk cabaret band The Dresden Dolls, joins The Boston Pops tonight for a New Year’s Eve. By Margaret Smith.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/east/massachusetts/x1671992182/Boston-Pops-to-ring-in-the-New-Year-with-the-eclectic-Amanda-Palmer
- with photo

STOVALL BROWN: Cruise into the New Year with Stovall Brown -- When rhythm-and-blues bandleader Chris “Stovall” Brown takes the stage for tonight’s New Year’s Eve cruise on Boston Harbor, he’ll be joined by vocalist Madeleine Hall. By Jay N. Miller
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/east/massachusetts/x1437799747/Cruise-into-the-New-Year-with-Stovall-Brown
- with photo

EVENTS ROUNDUP: Mark new year with fireworks, dancing, hikes -- Here’s a listing of what’s happening locally on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/east/massachusetts/x1671992120/Mark-new-year-with-fireworks-dancing-hikes

MORE EVENTS: Lots to do on New Year's Eve in MetroWest and beyond -- Amid bleak employment options and shaken consumer confidence, the Crowne Plaza in Natick believes it has the perfect way to close a decade marked by a late nosedive: comedy. By Michael Morton.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/east/massachusetts/x1671992076/Lots-to-do-on-New-Years-Eve-in-MetroWest-and-beyond

COMMUNITY GARDENS: Ashland community gardens a growing success -- After a successful first season for the Ashland Community Gardens, organizers are hoping to ramp up the program in 2010. By Kendall Hatch.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/east/massachusetts/x370507886/Ashland-community-gardens-a-growing-success
- with file photo

CLASS RING FOUND: Class ring returned after 32 years -- Thirty-two years after she lost her high school ring at Nantasket Beach, Patricia Doherty has it back, thanks to a Randolph High grad who now lives in Georgia. By Kaitlin Keane.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/east/massachusetts/x980515974/Class-ring-returned-after-32-years
- with photo

PHOTO GALLERY: Cape Cod in 2009 -- Here's a selection of images from 2009 that showcase the fun and beauty that can be found on Cape Cod.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/east/massachusetts/x980515810/Photo-gallery-Cape-Cod-in-2009

LIFESTYLE COLUMNS

JULIA SPITZ: America's New Year spirits -- It's hard to believe we didn't invent New Year's Eve. Most everything about the celebration seems so American. Out with the old, in with the new, and in the blink of an eye, or the drop of a ball in Times Square, we can -- no, we will -- reinvent ourselves.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/east/massachusetts/x980515951/Julia-Spitz-Americas-New-Year-spirits
- with column mug

REV. TESS BAUMBERGER: Putting the pastoral in pastoral care -- Traditionally, the New Year is a time for resolutions. One of the resolutions we share at Unity Church is to offer good pastoral care to our members and friends. After all, this is one of the reasons we come together in church community, to offer and to receive comfort from one another in our times of suffering and need.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/east/massachusetts/x1671991930/Rev-Tess-Baumberger-Putting-the-pastoral-in-pastoral-care
- with column mug

GRANLUND CARTOON: Dick Cheney a new White House party crasher
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/opinions/cartoons/x980516128/Granlund-cartoon-Dick-Cheney-a-new-White-House-party-crasher

EDITORIAL: Goodbye to all that -- This hasn't been the worst of all years, but by the 365th day, most years have worn out their welcome. There are plenty of aspects of 2009 we're happy to wave goodbye to. By the MetroWest Daily News.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/opinions/editorials/x980515910/Editorial-Goodbye-to-all-that

LLOYD GARVER: Free can be expensive - My old cell phone died recently. We had been so happy together. It was a very simple phone, not like today's "smart phones." All I used it for was to make and receive calls and an occasional text message. It was perfect for me, so I took it with me to the phone store so I could show the salesperson what I wanted. Boy, was I living in a dream world.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/features/x1437799754/Lloyd-Garver-Free-can-be-expensive
- with column mug

SLOT MACHINES: House speaker's bill would allow slots at Raynham Park, other state tracks -- Hopes for slot machines at Raynham Park and other Massachusetts racetracks should get a shot in the arm next year when House Speaker Robert DeLeo introduces his own gaming expansion bill. By Erik Potter.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/east/massachusetts/x980515680/House-speakers-bill-would-allow-slots-at-Raynham-Park-other-state-tracks
- with Raynham Park file photo

TEACHER’S LETTER: Brockton teacher’s letter about shooting creates discussion -- A letter written by a Brockton High School teacher in the wake of a shooting outside the school stirred a firestorm of responses this week. Doug Van Gorder of Quincy, a math teacher at Brockton High School for 12 years, wrote the letter, which has been called “confusing” and “off the wall” and is being discussed on national blogs. By Elaine Allegrini.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/east/massachusetts/x1671992049/Brockton-teacher-s-letter-about-shooting-creates-discussion

SPORTS

COLLEGE FOOTBALL NATION: Football may never see the likes of Tebow, McCoy again -- Tonight, Tim Tebow says goodbye. On Thursday, Colt McCoy does the same. Great players graduate every year, put college football in the past and move on to the next stage of their lives. Tebow and McCoy are not merely great players, however. They’re historically significant, quarterbacks against whom future generations will be measured. By Eric Avidon.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/east/massachusetts/x980515597/College-Football-Nation-Football-may-never-see-the-likes-of-Tebow-McCoy-again